India, June 23 -- A 23-year-old Indian-origin software engineer has revealed why she quit Google to pursue a podcast and build an AI startup, saying that staying in a comfortable job and wondering "what could have been" felt scarier than taking the leap.

In an as-told-to essay published in Business Insider, Aashna Doshi, a former Google engineer based in New York City, wrote, "I took a big risk to get my Google job. Now I'm taking another one by leaving it."

Aashna said that she received a full-time offer from Google in February 2024, months before graduating from Georgia Tech. However, the role was based in California, while she wanted to work in New York City.

She said that despite a difficult job market for many of her peers, she tu...